Connector, electronic device and illuminating device having the connector

ABSTRACT

A connector for electronic device includes a cylindrical body, an end cap formed at one end of the cylindrical body that includes a first section and a second section, wherein the first section is formed between the end cap and the second section, the end cap has a diameter bigger than that of the first section, and the first section has a diameter bigger than that of the second section, and a circumferential wall of the second section at least partially has threads, and an insulator circumferentially formed in one piece on the first section, wherein the end cap comprises a first electrical contact surface on an end surface facing the first section, and the first section includes a second electrical contact surface on an end surface facing the second section, and the first electrical contact surface and the second electrical contact surface are insulated from the first section.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a national stage entry according to 35 U.S.C.§371 of PCT application No.: PCT/EP2012/075748 filed on Dec. 17, 2012,which claims priority from Chinese application No.: 201210006329.X filedon Jan. 10, 2012, and is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Various embodiments relate to a connector for electronic device, anelectronic device having the connector and an illuminating deviceconfigured to include the electronic device.

BACKGROUND

With the development of science and technology, various electronicdevices become an indispensable part in people's life. A commonelectronic device, particularly a high-power electronic device,comprises a circuit board, a heat sink, especially a metal heat sink,for cooling the circuit board, and a driver for driving the circuitboard to operate. During assembling, the circuit board and the driverneed to be electrically connected so as to supply power to components onthe circuit board. Moreover, for the sake of good heat dissipatingeffects, the circuit board and the driver also need to be insulatedlyand mechanically connected, for instance, the heat sink is arrangedbetween the circuit board and the driver.

In the related art, the circuit board and the driver often should beindependently connected by using, for instance, electrical lead orelectrical connector, and the heat sink is fixed on apart to be cooledby additionally using, for instance, an adhesive paste or a bucklestructure. In such a traditional assembling manner, not only electricalconnection and mechanical connection need to be simultaneouslyperformed, but also the process is quite complex and costly. When theadhesive paste is used for mechanical connection, adverse influencesalso may be exerted on the effect of the mechanical connection due totoo high temperature of the heat sink. When the mechanical connection isperformed by using, for instance, the buckle structure, since the bucklestructure usually cannot be re-opened, it is inconvenient for themaintenance of the electronic device.

SUMMARY

In order to solve the above problems, various embodiments provide aconnector for electronic device. The electrical connection and insulatedmechanical connection can be simultaneously realized by using theconnector; moreover, the connector has a simple structure and is easilyinstalled and disassembled.

A connector for electronic device is provided according to the presentdisclosure, including a cylindrical body and an end cap formed at oneend of the cylindrical body that includes a first section and a secondsection, wherein the first section is formed between the end cap and thesecond section, the end cap has a diameter bigger than that of the firstsection, and the first section has a diameter bigger than that of thesecond section, and a circumferential wall of the second section atleast partially has threads, and the connector further includes aninsulator circumferentially formed in one piece on the first section,the end cap includes a first electrical contact surface on an endsurface facing the first section, and the first section includes asecond electrical contact surface on an end surface facing the secondsection.

The concept of the present disclosure lies in using the conductivity andthe thread structure of the connector often made of a metal tosimultaneously realize the electrical connection and the mechanicalconnection. By taking the insulation requirement in mechanicalconnection into particular consideration, the connector further has theinsulator formed in one piece. The insulator merely encloses the firstsection in a circumferential direction to assure the insulation propertyof the first section, and also assure two end surfaces of the connector,as the first and second electrical contact surfaces, not to be coveredby the insulator. The connector configured in such a manner, when makingconnection in an electronic device, can electrically connect twoelectronic parts to be connected by using the first and secondelectrical contact surfaces; moreover, by means of the insulator, theelectrical insulation is realized with other electronic parts that needno electrical connection.

Therefore, a reliable electrical connection and mechanical connection isguaranteed in the electronic device.

In various embodiments, the insulator is molded on the first sectionthrough an insert-injection technology. Thus, the insulator and theconnector are formed in one piece. The insulator and the connector alsocan be fabricated in one piece through injection molding or othersimilar technologies.

In various embodiments, the end cap has an annular flange radiallyseparated from the first section, and an end surface of the annularflange facing the first section is the first electrical contact surface.The size of the interval between the annular flange and the firstsection is designed to match a position of a region to be contacted ofthe circuit board. Accordingly, the first electrical contact surface canbe enabled to precisely electrically contact a predetermined region ofparts in need of electrical connection, such as a connecting region ofthe circuit board. In another embodiment, the end cap also may not havethe annular flange radially separated from the cylindrical body, and theinsulator is merely against part of region of a lower surface of the endcap, and the other regions of the lower surface of the end cap areconfigured to be the first electrical contact surface.

In various embodiments, the annular flange and the first section definean annular accommodating cavity, in which one end of the insulator isaccommodated fitly. As a result, it is assured that only the firstelectrical contact surface of the connector contacts the connectingregion of parts in need of electrical connection, but the first sectionand the connecting region are electrically insulated.

In various embodiments, a first end surface of the insulator close tothe end cap and the first electrical contact surface are in same level.Preferably, the second end surface of the insulator away from the endcap and the second electrical contact surface are in same level. Suchconfiguration simplifies the fabrication and installation of theconnector.

In various embodiments, the cylindrical body and the end cap are made ofa conductive material. Preferably, the cylindrical body and the end capare made of copper. Of course, the cylindrical body and the end cap alsocan be made of other materials such as Al that have favorable conductiveperformances.

In addition, various embodiments further provide an electronic deviceincluding at least one connector described above, and including acircuit board, a driver housing accommodating a driver and a heat sink.

In various embodiments, the connector connects the circuit board, theheat sink, the driver and the driver housing in sequence, wherein afirst section of the connector enclosed by an insulator extends throughthe heat sink, a first electrical contact surface of the connector andthe circuit board are electrically connected, a second electricalcontact surface of the connector and the driver are electricallyconnected, and the second section is inserted into the driver housing.On one hand, the connector electrically connects the circuit board andthe driver by using the first and second electrical contact surfaces;and on the other hand, in order to avoid risks, such as short circuit,of the connector and the heat sink in a fixed state, due to electricalcontact, part of the connector with the insulator, i.e., the firstsection circumferentially enclosed by the insulator, particularly runsthrough the region where the electrical contact is not needed.Therefore, the connector simply and releasably mechanically connects theheat sink and the driver housing together.

Various embodiments provide an illuminating device including theelectronic device of the above type and a light source, wherein thelight source is installed on a circuit board of the electronic device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings, like reference characters generally refer to the sameparts throughout the different views. The drawings are not necessarilyto scale, emphasis instead generally being placed upon illustrating theprinciples of the disclosed embodiments.

In the following description, various embodiments described withreference to the following drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of a connector of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of an illuminating device of the presentdisclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawingthat show, by way of illustration, specific details and embodiments inwhich the disclosure may be practiced.

FIG. 1 is a side view of a connector of the present disclosure.

A connector 11, configured to be installed in an electronic device, hasboth the mechanical connecting function of the traditional connector andthe function of electrically connecting two electronic parts. Theconnector 11 has a profile similar to a bolt, that is, the connector 11has an end cap 3 and a cylindrical body 1. The cylindrical body 1consists of a first section 1.1 and a second section 1.2. The firstsection 1.1 is formed between the end cap 3 and the second section 1.2,the end cap 3 has a diameter bigger than that of the first section 1.1,and the first section 1.1 has a diameter bigger than that of the secondsection 1.2. Besides, the connector 11 further has an insulator 2 formedcircumferentially in one piece on the first section 1.1.

As the diameters of respective sections of the connector 11 are reducedin sequence, an end surface of the end cap 3 facing the first section1.1 is a first electrical contact surface A1, and an end surfaceconnecting the first section 1.1 and the second section 1.2 is a secondelectrical contact surface A2. By contacting the first and secondelectrical contact surfaces A1, A2 with different electronic parts,respectively, a reliable electrical connection between the electronicparts can be realized. Moreover, the insulator 2 assures the firstsection 1.1 that can be conductive not to electrically contact theelectronic parts. Besides, a circumferential wall of the second section1.2 at least partially has threads so as to realize a mechanicalconnecting function similar to that of the bolt.

In one preferred embodiment, the first electrical contact surface A1 canbe located in the same plane as a top surface of the insulator 2 facingthe end cap 3. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the end cap 3preferably has an annular flange 3.1 separated radially from the firstsection 1.1, and an end surface of the annular flange 3.1 facing thefirst section 1.1 is the first electrical contact surface A1. An annularaccommodating cavity is defined between the annular flange 3.1 and thefirst section 1.1 so that one end of the insulator 2 is accommodatedfitly in the accommodating cavity. The first electrical contact surfaceA1 is the end surface of the annular flange 3.1, which is favorable forprecisely contacting the first electrical contact surface A1 with aconnecting region on parts in need of the electrical connection, and thefirst section 1.1 and this connecting region are electrically separated.In addition, an end surface connecting the first section 1.1 to thesecond section 1.2 is used as the second electrical contact surface A2in the present embodiment. For the sake of convenient fabrication andinstallation, the first electrical contact surface A1 and a first endsurface A3 of the insulator 2 extending beyond the accommodating cavityare configured to be in same level, and the second electrical contactsurface A2 and a second end surface A4 of the insulator are in samelevel.

In the connector 11 of the present disclosure, the insulator 2 can bemolded in one piece with the first section 1.1 through technologies suchas insertion-injection or injection molding.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of an illuminating device of the presentdisclosure. The illuminating device comprises a circuit board 12, a heatsink 13, a driver 14, a driver housing 15 and a connector 11. Theconnector 11 mechanically connecting the parts above together in ascrewing manner; moreover, the connector 11 realizes the electricalconnection between the circuit board 12 and the driver 14 by using firstand second electrical contact surfaces A1, A2.

It can be seen clearly from FIG. 2 that in a connection state, a firstsection 1.2 of the connector 11 is at least partially fixed in thedriver housing 15. A first section of the connector 11 enclosed by aninsulator 2 extends through the heat sink 13; the first electricalcontact surface A1, i.e. annular end surface of an end cap 3 facing thefirst section 1.1 contacts a connecting region of the circuit board 12;the second electrical contact surface A2, i.e. an end surface connectingthe first section 1.1 and the second section 1.2 contacts a connectingregion of the driver 14. Therefore, the connector 11 merely electricallyconnects the circuit board 12 and the driver 14, and by means of theinsulator 2, it is assured that a conductive portion of the connector 11will not electrically contact the heat sink 13, thereby the shortcircuit is avoided.

While the disclosed embodiments have been particularly shown anddescribed with reference to specific embodiments, it should beunderstood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form anddetail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scopeof the disclosed embodiments as defined by the appended claims. Thescope of the disclosed embodiments is thus indicated by the appendedclaims and all changes which come within the meaning and range ofequivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

-   1 cylindrical body-   1.1 first section-   1.2 second section-   2 insulator-   3 end cap-   11 connector-   12 circuit board-   13 heat sink-   14 driver-   15 driver housing-   A1 first electrical contact surface-   A2 second electrical contact surface-   A3 first end surface-   A4 second end surface

The invention claimed is:
 1. A connector for electronic device, comprising: a cylindrical body, an end cap formed at one end of the cylindrical body that comprises a first section and a second section, wherein the first section is formed between the end cap and the second section, the end cap has a diameter bigger than that of the first section, and the first section has a diameter bigger than that of the second section, and a circumferential wall of the second section at least partially has threads, and an insulator circumferentially formed in one piece on the first section, wherein the end cap comprises a first electrical contact surface on an end surface of the end cap facing the first section, and the first section comprises a second electrical contact surface on an end surface of the first section facing the second section, and the first electrical contact surface and the second electrical contact surface are insulated from the first section by the insulator.
 2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the insulator is molded on the first section through an insert-injection technology.
 3. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the end cap has an annular flange radially separated from the first section, and an end surface of the annular flange facing the first section is the first electrical contact surface.
 4. The connector according to claim 3, wherein the annular flange and the first section define an annular accommodating cavity, in which one end of the insulator is accommodated fitly.
 5. The connector according to claim 4, wherein a first end surface of the insulator close to the end cap and the first electrical contact surface are in same level.
 6. The connector according to claim 4, wherein a second end surface of the insulator away from the end cap and the second electrical contact surface are in same level.
 7. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the cylindrical body and the end cap are made of a conductive material.
 8. The connector according to claim 7, wherein the cylindrical body and the end cap are made of copper.
 9. An electronic device, comprising a circuit board, a driver housing accommodating a driver and a heat sink, wherein the electronic device further comprises at least one connector the connector comprising: a cylindrical body, an end cap formed at one end of the cylindrical body that comprises a first section and a second section, wherein the first section is formed between the end cap and the second section, the end cap has a diameter bigger than that of the first section, and the first section has a diameter bigger than that of the second section, and a circumferential wall of the second section at least partially has threads, and an insulator circumferentially formed in one piece on the first section, wherein the end cap comprises a first electrical contact surface on an end surface of the end cap facing the first section, and the first section comprises a second electrical contact surface on an end surface of the first section facing the second section, and the first electrical contact surface and the second electrical contact surface are insulated from the first section by the insulator.
 10. The electronic device according to claim 9, wherein the connector connects the circuit board, the heat sink, the driver and the driver housing in sequence, wherein a first section of the connector enclosed by an insulator extends through the heat sink, a first electrical contact surface of the connector and the circuit board are electrically connected, a second electrical contact surface of the connector and the driver are electrically connected, and the second section is inserted into the driver housing.
 11. An illuminating device, comprising an electronic device and a light source mounted on a circuit board, the electronic device comprising the circuit board, a driver housing accommodating a driver and a heat sink, wherein the electronic device further comprises at least one connector, the connector comprising: a cylindrical body, an end cap formed at one end of the cylindrical body that comprises a first section and a second section, wherein the first section is formed between the end cap and the second section, the end cap has a diameter bigger than that of the first section, and the first section has a diameter bigger than that of the second section, and a circumferential wall of the second section at least partially has threads, and an insulator circumferentially formed in one piece on the first section, wherein the end cap comprises a first electrical contact surface on an end surface of the end cap facing the first section, and the first section comprises a second electrical contact surface on an end surface of the first section facing the second section, and the first electrical contact surface and the second electrical contact surface are insulated from the first section by the insulator. 